Introducing on-demand Snapchat geo-filters

In 2017, Volvo will replace the traditional car key with a Bluetooth based smartphone app. The app will automatically unlock the driver’s vehicle when they walk up to it and lock when the driver parks and turns away. The team at Volvo believe that this will give driver’s remote access to their car, and make rental car collections easier and more efficient using this digital key. Also, security concerns were dashed with Volvo stating that a stolen phone is safer than stolen keys. Volvo will trial the new technology in spring at its car sharing firm Sunfleet, based at Gothenburg airport in Sweden. If successful, a limited number of commercially available cars will be equipped with the new digital key technology in 2017.

App of the week

Anyone can now make Snapchat a more official part of their special events. The company is rolling out a new “on-demand” geofilter that allows users to pay for custom filters, which will temporarily appear within the app. This feature will set you back between $5 and $1000, which is still significantly less than what brands have paid for sponsored geo filter in the past. These on-demand filters will also cover much smaller geographic areas which you can play around with if you opt in. In-case you didn’t know, geofilters are the in-app illustrations — typically tied to specific physical locations — that you can overlay onto your snaps. Here’s a demo of the new feature:

Last week hot young designer brand, Public School revealed their collaboration with wearable tech accessories giant, Fitbit at New York Fashion week. The collection including five gender neutral accessories from Fitbit’s recently released Fitbit Alta in styles that range from metal statement pieces to sleek sports bands, and we only have to hold out until March to get our hands on them (or them on our hands). Both labels clearly understand the importance of pairing top quality functions with fashion-forward aesthetics that compliment customer’s personal style. We should be seeing a lot of more this in the coming week’s as Fashion Week continues around the world.

London based designer, Hayden Peek, has proposed a new concept for grocery receipts. By using an easy to understand traffic light system, shoppers will gain a clear insight into their own buying behaviour. These color-coded labels tell you at a glance if the food has low (green), medium (amber) or high (red) amounts of calories, sugar, fat, saturated fat and salt. Making this resource a part of everyday life it ensures busy people don’t have to spend any additional time and effort seeking it out. Peek hopes major supermarkets in the U.K. implement the system to help combat the growing obesity problem in the U.K.

Shopping just got even easier with the Pin & Tucker app. It provides a platform for users to give their feedback on an outfit or item, helping shoppers avoid fashion faux-pas with the help of experts. Pin & Tucker users can upload photos of items on display or on themselves. A user can then click ‘yay’ or ‘nay’ to give their feedback and also leave a comment. The app then updates users on whether shoppers took the item home or chucked it back on the rack. Pin & Tucker have adopted a Tinder-style functionality, mimicking the design of the popular dating app which allows users to browse through photos quickly and swiping yes or no. The app provides brands with vital consumer data and a non-invasive avenue to advertise their products.

At the recent Mobile World Congress event, Mark Zuckerberg unveiled dynamic streaming technology for 360-degree video, allowing users to immerse themselves in a unique viewing experience. The new technology compresses 360-degree video on the fly, reducing the amount of required bandwidth by four times, and increasing the quality by a factor of four. Consequently, the 360 streaming of video in VR will appear clearer and play faster. Facebook will bring this new social streaming advancement to Gear VR in the next few weeks.